Dissolution Ceremony

Dissolution Ceremony references the emotive power of portraiture and the complex nature of its role within institutionalised power structures in relation to whom is represented and the changing contexts of history and culture. The desire to acknowledge this complexity and work collaboratively has led O’Keeffe to utilise a potent ‘call and response’ form of portraiture. Sitters are painted in a formal, representational manner, full size in oil paint. They are then given the painting as an act of collaboration, whereby they physically respond to the work without constraints or instruction, further embodying this idea of reciprocation and balances of power.